07/12/2011 Author: Will Wainewright

HFMWeek Daily Snapshot - 7 December

NEWSPAPERS AND WIRES
Hedge funds fell 1% in November as global stock markets slumped because of growing concern that the European sovereign-debt crisis would spread, writes Bloomberg. The newswire’s aggregate hedge fund index dropped to 116.03 from 117.22 in October, bringing this year’s loss to 3.8%. Long-short equity funds, multi-strategy funds and macro funds, which bet on global economic trends, declined.

Leon Black, whose Apollo Global Management is on the hunt for assets of European banks in distress, said on Tuesday a disintegration of the euro zone would expand the buyout company's investment opportunities, reports Reuters. Despite new plans for tighter fiscal integration announced by France and Germany, eurozone central banks officials said on Tuesday a shock to the currency area could trigger its partial break-up.

Och-Ziff Capital Management founder Daniel Och thinks he may have sold his firm too short in a share offering last month, reports FINAlternatives. The publicly-listed New York-based hedge fund, which manages about $28.9bn, sold nearly $250m worth of shares to help pay down its debt. The firm sold the 33.3m shares, representing about 27% of its total shares outstanding, at a 19% discount to its share price the day before the announcement, and shares have surged 11% since the offering.

Lehman Brothers, whose collapse became a defining moment of the financial crisis, has won court approval to exit the biggest bankruptcy in US history, according to the Telegraph. US Bankruptcy Judge James Peck, who has handled the case since Lehman filed in September 2008, approved a plan that has secured the backing of all Lehman's creditors. The approval means that Lehman can now begin paying creditors some of the $23bn (£15bn) in cash it has raised, as well as selling remaining assets to raise more cash.

LAUNCHES
Former Lone Pine and Goldman Sachs executives are aiming to raise $1bn in an Asia-focused hedge fund, three sources told Reuters, hoping to break into a very small group of funds of that size in the region. The plan indicates that more blockbuster fund launches in Asia could follow as investors, despite volatile markets, are willing to risk their money with managers who have track records. Eashwar Krishnan, a former analyst at Greenwich-based hedge fund Lone Pine Capital, and Tanvir Ghani, former head of capital introduction for Asia-Pacific at Goldman Sachs, are preparing to launch the fund in April, the sources said.

PEOPLE MOVES
State Street Corporation has hired Paul McLaughlin as head of operations for the Alternative Investment Solutions team in Guernsey, as the financial services provider looks to build out its presence in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). McLaughlin brings more than 15 years of experience to the role and joins from BNY Mellon in Dublin, where he headed up the alternative investment servicing fund of funds and private equity for EMEA.